Skip to main content

Chosen to Love


Today, my pastor said something profound that was also very simple. That he was chosen to go and love. That he was placed where he was and when he was to love the broken. If we lived like that, like our one purpose in life was just to love, how beautiful this world would be.

It also challenged me to think beyond myself, to not see the personal gain or advantage in what I do. I'm at a place professionally where I feel the need and desire for growth. But what if I am placed where and when I am just to love others? To help them feel safe, to help them grow, to teach, to comfort, to love. The young adults I serve every day come with high hopes and expectations for themselves that often fall short within months of their first year in college. Some grow depressed, hopeless, stressed, frustrated. Many walk into my office just wondering what they will become. What an amazing opportunity for me to show them grace and hope. And I wonder, how many times I may have missed the mark because instead I wanted to show them how much I knew or all the things they can do to further themselves. I missed the intersection of hearing and loving. 

I am always thinking ahead. It is in my very nature. And while it can sometimes be a useful trait, it can also cause me to live outside of the moment. I'm constantly checking myself - "am I hearing what they're saying or am I thinking about what I'm going to say next?" Or "am I appreciating the beauty around me or am I thinking about all the things I could have done better today?"

And to go a step further, I think it's important to note that I was not chosen for my job because I was the very best. It was a series of meetings, circumstances and divine decisions that brought me to where I am. And I will work hard, do what I can to get better, learn, grow - and some of that will occur consciously and some will be organic over time. But what it so valuable is knowing that I was chosen, not just for my qualifications, but for something more. Maybe I was chosen by the Divine to love. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Authentic Relationship-Building

Over the past week, I reconnected with an old friend, caught up with a good friend and went out with a new friend. All of these women were relationships I made through current or past work experiences. As strong and educated women, I am able to learn from them and grow with them. I am confident that if one of us needed something, the other person would be more than willing and capable to assist. At a risk of over simplifying, this is authentic relationship-building at its finest.  Of course, I have varying levels of professional relationships in my network, and it is important to identify what those levels are for you. I like to say that there are three degrees of separation: Inner Circle - people that know you well and you know well Intermediate Circle - people you acquainted with or recently met  External Circle - people you want to get to know in the future That Inner Circle is precious and is a core group of people that you admire. These relationships t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fix Your Face

God gave me the gift of expression. In other words, I am ridiculously expressive. It shows on my face, it comes out of mouth, it flows from my hands. It is sometimes uncontrollable, although I am slowly getting mastery over my body and face. It's a process. However, I was just made aware of an odd idiosyncrasy of mine. It was first pointed out by a student, then by a co-worker. When I am listening, really intently, my face becomes entirely intense. Intense to the point of disapproving or angry. My eyes narrow and the corners of my mouth tense. Now, I know it is because I am thinking. The person speaking to me thinks otherwise. In the case of the student, they believed they upset me somehow or said something wrong. In the case of my co-worker, they wondered if I understood them or if they were completely off-base. And I am there - but really not - chasing my thoughts into action. I am always a step ahead, considering how this could work, how to phrase my question, or how we ...
Post a Comment
Read more